According to a study published by the research firm Wealth X, Hong Kong has overtaken New York, London, Paris, Tokyo and every other city in the world as the world’s largest ultra-high net worth city. By the same token, it has also become the bastion of luxury Swiss watches, says Anil Prabhakar

There has been a revival in the fortunes of the Swiss industry in the first 9 months of the year 2018 largely due to the contribution from Hong Kong & China. This comes after sluggish sales in 2016 and 2017. According to the figures released by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry and a presentation made by Euromonitor international, Hong Kong is the world’s number one market in terms of absolute sales as well as per capita spends. This is apparent from the number of outlets selling luxury Swiss watches. Rolex the undisputed global leader is available at 80 points of sale in Hong Kong.

According to Euromonitor international, the ranking of top three luxury brands remains unchanged with Rolex at Number 1, Omega at Number 2 and Cartier at Number 3. It is interesting to note that Cartier alone contributes to 66 per cent of Richemont group’s turnover. In the recent years, there has been a surge in the sale of pre-owned or second hand Swiss watches and Hong Kong is no exception. Tsim Sha Tsui business district has a number of stores retailing pre-owned watches. These watches are genuine and are priced less than 40 per cent as compared to the brand new watches.

More than half of the watches sold in Hong- Kong, new as well as pre-owned, are bought by visitors from mainland China and other parts of Asia. The market for Swiss watches is dominated by large watch and jewellery store chains. Chow Tai Fook, Empire Watch and Jewellery, Dickson and Prince Jewellery and Watch are some of the leading players. Hong Kong is thus a re-distribution hub where the competition is tough and the emphasis is therefore on maximising the turnover.

In such a scenario players like Prince Jewellery and Watch have adopted a unique strategy. Every year they take up an entire area in the Hong Kong Watch & Clock show and display rare and exclusive watches.

In an exclusive section titled ‘World Brand Piazza’ the best-of-the-best timepieces from 13 prestigious watch brands, including Blancpain, Breguet, Chopard, Corum, Franck Muller, Glashütte Original, Jacob & Co., Jaquet Droz, Juvenia, Parmigiani Fleurier, Piaget, SARCAR Genève, and ZENITH were showcased. Some of the watches that caught my fancy are:

Oval is a symbol of abundance and eternity in many cultures. The oval case is redesigned in accordance with the brand’s aesthetics. Inside the 31 x 29 mm diamond-set rose gold case are seven Happy Sport signature moving diamonds. A marine blue alligator strap is a gorgeous complement to modern women with refined taste.

The sporty, spontaneous, yet exquisitely feminine line highlights the whimsical and cheerful characteristics of the wearer.

Corum Golden Bridge Round

Taking inspiration from the magnificent Golden Gate Bridge in California, the smooth curve of the round case and the bridges’ Art Deco edges forges a sense of architectural tension and aesthetics. The bejewelled timepiece is comprised with 192 glaring round diamonds, recreating the stunning night view of San Francisco.

Astronomia Solar Planets Tourbillion by Jacob & Co

The brand recreates the solar system, by combining high-end Swiss watchmaking & brand founder Jacob Arabo’s talent for sourcing finest gemstones.The dial is adorned with seven planets made of cabochon-cut half-spheres precious stones: white granite as Mercury, rhodonite as Venus, red jasper as Mars, pietersite as Jupiter, tiger eye adorned with 18K rose gold ring as Saturn, blue calcite as Uranus and lastly, Neptune in lapis lazuli

The North Star by SARCAR Geneve

Inspired by the quintessential North star that has provided directions to wandering travellers, this watch with invisible set diamonds has 40mm case forged in 18K white gold. The dial and the crown are covered with a shimmer of 577 spectacular diamonds of 23.88-carats. The emerald indexes of 0.14-carats stand as the fascinating juxtaposition, while the rotating solitaire diamond of 2.15-carats is highly reminiscent of the North Star.

India despite its teeming millions does not figure in the top 20 markets in the world for Swiss watches. The reason behind this is the fact that Indian consumers are accustomed to buying their watches abroad. Before GST became applicable, the prices of Swiss watches were very high. It was cheaper to buy them in Hong Kong, Singapore or Dubai.

After GST, the prices are now on par and in a few cases, they are even cheaper. However, Indian consumers are wary of Government regulations that stipulate furnishing of PAN Card and restrictions on cash purchases above the stipulated limit of Rs. 2 lakhs.